


Where no one goes

by agent_astronaut



Category: Haikyuu!!, How to Train Your Dragon (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dragons, Day 5: AU, Fluff, KuroDai Week 2016, M/M, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-24
Updated: 2016-03-24
Packaged: 2018-05-28 18:47:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,702
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6341032
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/agent_astronaut/pseuds/agent_astronaut
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>How To Train Your Dragon AU, in which Daichi is the captain of the Karasuno Riders, and they race against Nekoma, whose captain is both insufferable and cute as heck.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Where no one goes

**Author's Note:**

> Welp, I've wanted to write this for months, and I finally did. You don't need to know about the movies to read this though, there's no spoilers. Just know that [this](http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/howtotrainyourdragon/images/d/dd/NADDER.png/revision/latest?cb=20131003204846) is Daichi's dragon and [this](http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/howtotrainyourdragon/images/7/7e/Monstrous-nightmare-01.png/revision/latest?cb=20100308052554) is Kuroo's. If you're curious about the rest of the team's dragons, you can google them, but they're not so important in the story.
> 
> By the way, [Dragon Racing](http://howtotrainyourdragon.wikia.com/wiki/Dragon_Racing) consists of two teams that have to search for the sheep that have been let lose through the island. Each time they put a catched sheep in their team's basket they win a point, and the team with most points win.
> 
> That said, please enjoy this long-ass fic I wrote for kurodai week, thank you.

The crow-like sound of Karasuno’s horn pierced through the air as a dozen dragons shot up in unison, their riders shouting encouragement for themselves and their teams, scattering through the sky in all directions while Daichi kept ascending vertically until the whole island was visible. He came to a stop, his Deadly Nadder flapping her wings to keep afloat, and he observed his team following the initial strategy, each examining a different part of the island in search of the sheep. He held on tighter to his dragon’s saddle and he smiled. The race had begun.

Daichi loved being a dragon rider. He’d had his dragon since he was 9, when as a baby she had tried to launch a venomous spine at him and he’d spent a week feeding her his mutton leftovers until she let him scratch the side of her neck, earning her confidence. He started training when he turned 10, and as soon as she was big enough for him to ride, Daichi got on her back and together they soared the skies of Karasuno Island, gliding through the clouds and flying towards the sunset. 

He started dragon racing when he was 12, and soon fell in love with the sport. That was how he met his best friends, Suga and Asahi, and they stayed together all those years. Daichi became captain at 17, next to Yui, putting his natural leadership skills to practice, and leading his team from the mediocrity it had been stuck in for years to a new era of winners. They practiced almost every day, and held as many races with other teams as they could. And their team took every race seriously, be it a friendly race, a serious competition or a practice race within their team like they were doing at that moment.

He scanned the sky to check that his team was organizing itself well. He saw Tsukki and Yamaguchi dart off in different directions, each one flying towards the part of the island they know best. He spotted Suga's dragon soon, his giant Typhoomerang shooting forwards to scan the town, and Asahi and some of the girls flying in group to scan the port and the rest of the coast. Daichi watched Yui by the corner of his eyes, stopping her Whispering Death next to him with a grin

"Nice day for dragon racing, right, Daichi?"

Yui was the co-captian of the Karasuno riders, and while Daichi was the pillar that held them all together, Yui’s motivation was what kept the team going. It also helped that she had the deadliest dragon in the island, which usually intimidated the opposing team, and now was intimidating Daichi, as he was competing against her in the practice race.

Still, he smiled back at her. "I don't care if Ragnarok was happening, we'd still beat you"

Yui laughed, shaking her head. "There’s no way you can beat me and my baby" she replied, tenderly petting its thin neck, and Daichi shivered at the dragon’s empty eyes and barbed teeth.

He was going to answer with another witty comment, but then he noticed some movement in an unoccupied part of the island and darted forward to check it. He heard Yui swear behind him, and follow his path, but her Whispering Death couldn't compare to his Deadly Nadder’s speed. As they went closer Daichi confirmed his suspicions: the movement he'd registered was indeed coming from the black sheep, running from a boar in the plains of the outskirts of the island.

Daichi rushed forward to grab the sheep, but a black body dashed in front of him, providing a distraction, and when the road was clear, the sheep was already gone. He heard Yui's victory scream, and watched with a frown as Kageyama's grinned on his Night Fury, watching Hinata fly away with the prey. Ignoring Yui's laughter, he took off again, soaring the sky in search of another sheep. This was not the end.

\---- 

Tanaka slam-dunked the black sheep onto his team's basket, and his shouts were louder than the horn indicating the end of the race. Daichi landed and got off his dragon with a grin. He slapped Tsukki's back to congratulate him, and he was met with a cold stare both from him and his Timberjack, which he decided to ignore. He walked towards Yui with confidence, watching her encourage her teammates. He offered her a hand, smiling.

"You guys played well"

Yui rolls her eyes, but shook his and. "Whatever, you just won 'cause we went easy on you"

"Of course" he laughed, and both of them turned to face the team.

"Everyone, listen!" Yui called, and the conversations stopped immediately, giving in to silence to listen to the captains.

"I have to congratulate you today" Daichi smiled. "You all played excellently. Those of you who won, and those of you who lost, you all played better than you've ever played, so congratulations" Yui initiated an applause, and they all followed. "As you know, the Karasuno Festival starts next week" he reminded them. "And if I were Nekoma, I'd honestly be pretty scared"

"Let's kick their asses!" said Yui, raising a fist torwards their sky, and the whole team roared. Daichi smiled. You could sense the anticipation in the air. After all, Karasuno didn't usually have other teams to compete with, and the imminent arrival of Nekoma was making everyone excited. He heard Hinata telling Noya and Tanaka about the letter he'd recently received from Nekoma's rider, Kenma, in which he said that they were already on their way. Daichi smiled, and thought about the letter he'd received that morning, from the other team's captain, which made him feel giddy and excited every time he thought about it. He took it out of his pocket, where he had crumpled it, and read it again:

Sawamura,  
We're sailing off today. We'll arrive at Karasuno a few days after you receive this letter. Nekoma's more ready than ever to come back home with a trophy. We won't show mercy. Knowing you, I know Karasuno won't, either.  
See you in a few weeks.  
Your favorite captain,  
Kuroo Tetsurou.

Daichi smiled at the letter, and put it back into his pocket. He petted his Deadly Nadder's head, and whispered. "Soon"

His dragon purred, like it understood him, and he put a hand in his pocket to touch the letter again. A few more days until the games started. A few more days until they raced seriously once more. Until Nekoma, Karasuno's historically rival team, arrived to compete with them. Until he saw Kuroo again.

Daichi really couldn't wait.

\---- 

"They're here!" Yachi screamed, from her spot on the bell tower, and everyone started murmuring "I can see them, they're coming!"

Daichi tried to suppress his smile but couldn't. Suga raised an eyebrow at him. "Excited, are we?"

Daichi shrugged. "Aren't you? It's our first official race in a year"

"Yeah, like racing could get that dumb look on your face" he smirked. Daichi blushed, and didn't answer. Okay, so maybe racing wasn't what was getting him so hyped, maybe it was a certain captain from Nekoma what made his heart race. He wondered if he'd have the same spark in his eyes, the same smirk that was so annoying and endearing at the same time. His thoughts started racing but he stopped when he noticed Suga’s knowing look. He frowned. 

“What”

“Nothing” his friend sang, but he kept grinning knowingly. Daichi crossed his arms and ignored him. He watched Nekoma's boat approach through the distance.

"Looks like they're coming by boat after all" he muttered, and his statement was followed by a collective gasp, as Nekoma's dragons came into view in the horizon. "Never mind" Daichi sighed, and Suga snickered next to him.

He watched the dragons grow bigger with proximity. He smiled when he recognized Kuroo's Monstrous Nightmare, flying in the front of the team, and rolled his eyes when the dragon made a back flip that raised gasps and admiration from the village of Karasuno. "Drama Queen" he smiled, and waited for them to land elegantly in the port, the captain on the front and the rest of the team behind them. Yui and he approached the team, though Daichi's eyes were focused on the Monstrous Nightmare in front of him. He watched the captain dismount with a jump, and take off his helmet, revealing a horrible bed hair exactly like Daichi remembered it. Kuroo locked eyes with him and smirked, making Daichi's heart skip a beat.

Yui shook his hand with a smile, and Daichi approached him to do the same.

"Sawamura" Kuroo said, his smirk growing wider, and Daichi shook his hand.

"Kuroo" he replied, and couldn't contain his smile anymore. "Welcome to Karasuno"

\---- 

They had no time to rest that day. It turned out that half of Nekoma had arrived on the boats, ready to attend the games to cheer on their village's team. And while they insisted on setting up camp in the outsides of the village so they wouldn’t be such a bother, Daichi and Yui still had to work with Kiyoko and Yachi to look for beds, chairs, and cooking tools that could be lent to the other tribe. He left Enoshita in charge of the team, even though he wished he could be there himself. He was sure they'd be all right, though. He did trust his team, after all. And the Nekoma guys weren't that bad, either, even if their captain was sometimes a bit… frustrating.

He wondered what he was doing right then. They were probably still assigning the rooms. Would Kuroo be sleeping next to the window, or near the door, so he could sneak away at night? Daichi smiled, the image of Kuroo walking around Karasuno in his pajamas amusing. He wondered if he'd get the urge to ride his dragon through the night sky when everyone else was sleeping, like he did. He wondered if he ever did it.

His thoughts were interrupted when Yui elbowed him to snap him out of his thoughts. "Hello, Karasuno to Daichi? Anyone home? We have to get this table to the Nekoma camp" she said, pointing him to a very heavy-looking desk.

"Give me a break, Yui, I'm tired" he sighed, but still grabbed an end of the table, and raised it with the help of his co-captain.

She raised an eyebrow. "Tired already? Man, I wonder where your energies will be at the festival. I don't know about you but I really don't want to lose to those cats"

"Don't worry about the festival, I'll be fine" he said, focused on not dropping the table. "And I'm not going to let them win, either. We may have lost last spring when they invited us for their Festivals, but we've grown much stronger since then"

"That's the spirit!" Yui grinned, and they dropped the table in the middle of the camp.

Yui stretched her arms and Daichi straightened his back. "Why are these tables so heavy anyways?" he muttered, and Yui rolled her eyes. 

"Oh, don't be such a baby, Dai. We're Vikings! Besides, you can’t be tired already, we have a long day ahead of us" she said, and pointed at the line of tables in the edge of town, waiting to be moved to the camp. Daichi groaned. Indeed, that was going to be a very long day.

\---- 

After all the tables had been moved, all the tents had been put up, and the camp was finally organized, they moved to help Kyoko and Yachi in putting up the signs and flags for the Festival, while they attended the stables to make sure the team wasn't having any trouble establishing in their rooms. Soon after, when they were hanging the flags, he spotted both teams taking a walk through the village. He stole a glance at Kuroo, and their eyes met, but Yui snapped him back to reality by calling him a "lazy, aloof fool that didn't deserve to call himself captain if he couldn't even help a lady hang the freaking unending flags”.

It was almost midnight when they finished clearing the stables to make room for Nekoma's dragons, and when Yui left to see how the girls were doing, Daichi sighed and leaned on the wall with a long sigh. He was exhausted. He slid down the wall and landed on the floor with another sigh. He didn't want to organize any other festival ever again. No, the next Games they should do them in Nekoma. And bring all of Karasuno there, too, see how they organized. He was just about to sigh again, when he was forced to open his eyes by a light kick to his feet.

Daichi opened his eyes and looked up to see Kuroo smirking down at him, that smug look on his face that Daichi found so annoying, and yet oddly endearing. "Kuroo" he said as a greeting.

"What's up Sawamura, is the floor comfortable?"

Daichi shut his eyes again, and leaned his head on the wall. "Shut up, today was awful" he groaned.

Kuroo let out an amused hum, and Daichi heard him move until he was sitting next to him. "I saw you having fun with the decorations. Wanted to join you captains, but I didn't think it would have been polite to ditch the visit your managers had planned about the village" he said, and Daichi snorted. "What?"

"Nothing, it's just I never thought I'd ever hear you talk about manners"

"Hey, I'm polite" Kuroo whined, and Daichi cackled. "Don't laugh!" Kuroo insisted, but Daichi couldn't help it.

When he was done laughing, he looked back at the captain, and he could have sworn he saw a pink tilt to his cheeks.

"You know, I missed our talks, Sawamura" Kuroo commented, matter-of-factly, and great, now he was the one blushing. "I've been looking forward to coming here to see your Karasuno since you first told me about it"

"It's not that great. Nothing compared to the city." Daichi muttered, suddenly awkward. Kuroo shrugged.

"I think it is. I think it's special" he said, and then he smiled at him- not smirked, smiled, an honest smile that Daichi hadn't seen him share to anybody else, and it sent his heart racing, but he tried to stay composed.

"But it's true that you don't have that many monuments" Kuroo quickly added, as if he'd realized he was being nice and was trying to fix it. "I've never been to a shorter touristic tour."

Daichi raised an eyebrow "What were you expecting? We're just a small island, we don't have big palaces and famous architects like you guys do at Nekoma"

"Still, I was expecting something more exciting" he said "The forests you told me about. The cliffs, the caves that are only accessible by dragon. Hell, I can't tell you how much I want to ride my dragon to the top of the head of the giant rock Vikings you have guarding the island"

"That's illegal" Daichi laughed, trying not to focus on the fact that Kuroo actually remembered everything he’d told him back in Nekoma the last time his team visited, and they way that made his heart race. When he saw Kuroo pout, he elaborated. "Their heads are already heavily scratched with dragon claws. You weren't the first to think about that"

"Well, all right. But when are you going to show me the real views? Are you going to make me wait until the race, when I won't be able to appreciate them with the rush of it all?"

Daichi bit his lip. They really shouldn't. Dragon curfew had already started, and Daichi was supposed to be the responsible captain. But then again, with everyone busy with the preparations for the festival, it was unlikely that anyone would see them. And he felt something.... A rush of adrenaline, a heat through his blood... Being with Kuroo brought out a different part of him, and who didn't need a little recklessness every once in a while?

Daichi stood up and extended a hand at Kuroo to help him up. "I'm going to regret this" he sighed, and Kuroo smirked, and took his hand to stand up.

"You're the best, Sawamura"

Daichi was sure that the combination of this sentence plus the lingering feeling of Kuroo's hand on his was enough to make him combust.

\---- 

Dragon Riders had always had strict schedules. A strict curfew was necessary, to provide both the dragons and the riders enough sleep for the day. Daichi understood the rules. One of the reasons he was appointed captain was his responsibility and refusal to break the rules. There were times, however, when Daichi ignored the schedules, ignored the rules and rode his dragon in the sunset. Today was one of these days.

As soon as he took off, Daichi's insecurities vanished. He'd almost forgotten how good this felt: the sense of freedom, of immortality, of being one with the world. Kuroo moved to fly beside him, and Daichi flashed him a grin. The Nekoma captain responded by laughing and doing a pirouette with his Monstruous Nightmare, who shot fire into the sky. Daichi rolled his eyes, still smiling, and nudged his Deadly Nadder, and they shot up gliding through the clouds. Daichi shivered through the feeling of the cold water, and laughed Kuroo's hair, draped across his forhead in a wet mess. Kuroo glared at him, but Daichi pointed forward to get his attention to what was in front of him and Kuroo was left speechless. A sea of clouds extended beneath them, a pinkish tint to them because of the starting sunset.

They observed the view for a while, their dragons flapping their winds to keep them in place. Daichi would have stayed there forever, but he remembered all the places he wanted to show him while there was still light. He swooped down, Kuroo following soon after, and soared the sky over the island's coastline to show Kuroo the view. They descended, and their dragons glided above the water, their wings sometimes touching the crystalline sea. The sun was almost finished setting, so Daichi rode towards the sun until he got to the cliffs. His dragon ascended vertically and landed swiftly in the top of the highest rock.

Daichi dismounted, and watched Kuroo land beside him, and jump off of his dragon with elegance.

"Is this the end of our ride?" he asked. Daichi nodded. 

"The sun will set soon, and we don't have much time"

Kuroo messed a bit with his hair, making Daichi snort. He walked closer to him and tried styling it.

"I can't believe your hair" he remarked.

Kuroo frowned. "Hey, you're the one who made us go through those clouds, who does that?"

Daichi rolled his eyes. "Cry-baby" he said, and Kuroo pouted. Daichi noticed how close together they were standing and jumped away from him, blushing. Kuroo coughed awkwardly.

"So, what did you want to show me here?" he said, trying to change the subject.

Daichi looked down, smiling. "This is my favorite spot in the island" he said.

"Do you come here and watch the sunset often?"

"Not just the sunset" Daichi said, and he turned around to face the island. "Look"

Kuroo turned too, and his breath hitched. The island was bathed by a faint red light, as the sun was almost down, and the view was simply spectacular. They stood there, their backs to the sun, and when the night was upon them, Daichi murmured. "Wait for it..."

Kuroo looked at him in confusion, but before he could say anything, the lights in Karasuno started lighting up, one by one, until the island looked like out of a dream, lit up by stars.

"That’s- whoa" Kuroo said, and Daichi smiled at him.

"I know"

They stayed there for a while, the nightly breeze ruffling their hair. When Daichi saw his dragon yawn for the first time, he sighed.

"We should be heading back"

Kuroo nodded. The way back was spent in silence. There was nothing else to say.

\---- 

The festival began louder than a thousand baby Fireworms getting fed by their mothers. Daichi had honestly never felt so much energy in Karasuno. The streets were filled with people from both villages, children playing together and making friends they wouldn't forget. There was a festive spirit in the air, anyone could feel it, and Daichi couldn't help but smile.

"This is the best festival there's ever been in Karasuno" Suga shouted in his ear, so he could hear him over the bagpipes playing in the street, next to a group of dancing children. "We should invite Nekoma every year"

"I agree if you volunteer to spend the day before organizing everything" Daichi shot back. He moved to the side of the road with so the food trolley didn't run him over, and added. "I'm not putting myself through that again"

But his friend had stopped listening when the trolley arrived, and instead of moving to the side he'd stopped it to buy. He offered Daichi some food, and he gladly took it.

"I'm just saying, those cats sure know how to throw a party" Suga shrugged, and Daichi couldn't argue with that. Maybe there was something about the city, but the Nekoma people could be seen everywhere, dancing and laughing and simply having a blast. Daichi spotted Asahi trying to stop Noya and Tanaka from getting into a fight. He sneaked behind him and clapped his back a bit stronger than he should have. Asahi jumped and yelped in shock, but sighed in relief when he noticed it was him.

"Thank Thor you're here, they're gonna kill each other" Asahi pointed at the second years, who were glaring at two rowdy-looking team-members of Nekoma. Daichi sighed, and went forward to grab his kouhais' ears. They yelled in pain but Daichi ignored them and pulled harder.

"Stop it with the threatening looks, you idiots" he yelled at them, and released them. "Save that energy for the race" he added, and Noya and Tanaka nodded in shame. Noya perked up when he saw Daichi was eating, and tugged at Tanaka's sleeve.

"We just missed the food trolley! Why did nobody warn us it was coming?"

They glared at Asahi, who raised his hands, agitated. "How could I have warned you when you were about to commit homicide?"

But Noya wasn't listening anymore, he hurried away quickly with Tanaka in search of the food trolley.

When he was gone, Asahi sighed. "Festivals are so exhausting" he complained, and Suga rolled his eyes.

"You're all such crybabies. Look around! We've never had such an exciting festival. Look at how happy the team is!" he said, pointing at one of the booths, where Kenma was showing some kind of trick to Hinata, who kept oohing and aaaahing until Kageyama smacked in the head accompanied with a "Stop being an idiot, Hinata!" Behind Kenma, Kuroo laughed, and Daichi felt his head lighten. The race wound not start until the afternoon, so he was wearing casual clothes, which looked really good on him. He wore lose brown pants, and a vest over a shirt with the first three buttons unbuttoned, making Daichi's eyes linger a bit too much on his exposed neck. Kuroo seemed to have noticed his staring, because he turned around, locked eyes with Daichi and waved with his usual smirk in his mouth. Daichi waved back, a smile tugging its way to his lips. It looked like he was going to say something, when Daichi registered Asahi calling his name repeatedly.

"What?" he said, glaring at him. Asahi stiffened.

"Nothing, I was just asking what new strategies might Nekoma used this afternoon, but you weren't answering so..."

"I think Daichi has his mind in other things today" Suga smirked knowingly, and Daichi frowned, turning red.

"Shut up" he mumbled, and Suga laughed, leaving Asahi confused as to what was happening. The subject quickly turned to racing, and Daichi was happy to join, trying to focus on the conversation and not the captain who was making him so distracted lately.

The three boys got separated when the morning was ending, and by mealtime, Daichi was on his own. It's not like he really minded. After all, he'd spent the whole morning wondering around the festival, checking on the team and helping when he was needed. He'd just finished helping Kyoko and Yachi with the final preparations of the stadium from which they'd take off, and he was free to go to lunch. He passed by the stables to get his dragon in the way, to take her to the festival for a bit. He bought their meals as he spotted Yui walking around with some of her friends. He felt like sitting alone with his dragon though, so he took his meal and sat on a rock on the hill, overlooking the festival while his Deadly Nadder rolled in the grass happily. 

He took a bite of his food as he thought about the race. It was approaching faster as each second passed. For a moment, he worried about Nekoma being too good a team for them, but dismissed the thought right away. Karasuno was strong. They might not have been such a great team in the last few years, but no one could deny that they were good now. Their new acquisitions to the team had been great, of course. Hinata and Kageyama made a powerful duo, with their sonic sound-waves dragons. Hinata's Grapple Grounder was fast and thin, and its sound wave was very strong, yet not as strong as Kageyama's Night Fury. Tsukkishima and Yamaguchi were also a good strategy duo, managing to find the sheep in the places no one was looking, and Tsukki was especially good at catching the prey from the other team's grasp. And of course, their old team members were amazing too, both the boys and the girls, and Yui was an amazing co-captain. Daichi smiled. Karasuno had nothing to fear. Besides, what would Kuroo say if he knew he was worried about the match?

As if on cue, a body flopped down on the grass beside him, and Daichi turned to face the Nekoma captain smirking at him. "Hello, captain" he purred, and Daichi rolled his eyes.

"Kuroo" he said, trying not to sound too happy about his presence. He saw his Monstrous Nightmare approach his Deadly Nadder and smiled as they started playing together. Kuroo pouted beside him.

"Is that really how you greet your guest? I never knew you country people were so rude" he said, trying to rile him up, but Daichi didn't buldge.

"Yeah, well get used to it" he shrugged, and went back to his meal.

"Aw, come on Sawamura, indulge me a little bit here" he groaned. "Do you know how hard it was to go through the day without my favorite captain?"

"Really"

"Nah not really" he admitted, flopping onto his back and lying on the grass. "They have the greatest food here in Karasuno, I've been stoking myself” He looked up at Daichi with a smirk. "You're easily replaceable"

Daichi raised an eyebrow "So you're admitting we have good food in Karasuno"

Kuroo laughed, the sounds rolling out of his mouth like water flowing down a stream. "I guess I am" he said. "Good food and good views, I'll give you that"

Daichi felt a smile tugging at his lips. He said nothing, though. It was peaceful in the hills. From where he was sitting, he could see the festival in the valley, the people going back and forth in their daily lives, laughing and talking with each other. But from his spot in the hills, it all seemed distant. From his spot on the hill, all he could feel were the clouds above him, his dragon happily playing in the hill, and Kuroo's comforting presence beside him. Because surprisingly, Kuroo wasn't riling him up that much. He was draped over the green grass, his arms behind his head and his eyes closed. His chest rose slowly and he exhaled with a smile tugging at his lips, and Daichi felt a tug in his chest he couldn't explain.

"Kuroo..." he muttered, and the other captain opened an eye to look at him questioningly. Daichi opened his mouth to say something, when the sound of the Karasuno horn filled the sky, making birds flee from their trees and taking Daichi out of his trance.

"It's time"

\---- 

They ran towards the stadium, their dragons, in tow, where the people from both tribes were taking their seats in the stands. Daichi nodded at Kuroo as goodbye, and joined his co-captain, who was trying to organize the team on her own.

“Daichi!!” she sighed in relief when she saw him. “Thank Thor you’re here, everyone’s frantic”

“Sorry I’m late. Am I the last one?”

Yui shook her head. “The freak duo haven’t arrived yet- Wait, here they come” 

Daichi turned, and saw Hinata and Kageyama fly into the stadium, Kageyama’s Night Fury unable to miss. They both apologized for being late, and Yui clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention.

“Nekoma is a formidable opponent” she said, straight to the point. “You all know this. But so are we”

Daichi nodded beside her. “They might have won last time, but they were in their territory, and we’ve been practicing non-stop. You guys have improved a lot, just put your training into practice and you’ll be fine”

“Let’s crush those cats!!” screamed Yui, and everyone cheered.

“Karasuno, fight!!” they shouted, and everyone mounted their dragons. Daichi and Yui shook Kuroo’s hand, while he smirked.

“May the best team win” he said, and Yui scoffed, while Daichi matched his smirk with one of his own.

“Yeah, may the best team win”

They got into positions around the stadium while they waited for the start signal. Daichi petted his dragon, who was practically vibrating with excitement. “Wait for it…” he whispered. The stadium was quiet. He leaned closer to his dragon, feeling its heartbeat through his chest, anticipation sending shivers down his spine.

The horn pierced through the air as the crowds went wild, and all of the riders took off at once, determined to win.

\---- 

Karasuno took the first point quickly, Tanaka’s victory shout echoing louder than the horn indicating the won point. Daichi cheered as well, stopping as soon as he saw Kuroo’s friend Kenma dropping a sheep into Nekoma’s basket. Tanaka growled next to him.

“Don’t mind!” said Daichi “We’ll take the next one!”

With that, they all shot up and rushed into a different part of the island to keep finding sheep and tossing them into their team’s basket. They were tied to 5 points when Daichi noticed Kuroo’s Monstrous Nightmare stopping beside him. He tensed.

“Well, hello there, Sawamura” 

“Kuroo” he replied curtly, not bothering to look at him as he kept scanning the island for a white flicker of movement.

“Well, that’s just rude” Daichi could practically hear his pout. “I come all this way to hang out with my favorite captain and this is what you give me? I’m hurt”

Daichi and his dragon huffed at the same time, both of them familiar with the tactic Kuroo was using at that moment. He did the same thing at the match they’d had at Nekoma months ago, after all. He wasn’t an idiot, and had soon noticed Daichi’s sharp eyesight, and he took advantage of it, following him until he spotted a sheep and then used his Monstrous Nightmare’s speed to catch it before him.

But Daichi wasn’t an idiot either, and if the tactic had come as a surprise months ago, it wouldn’t anymore. He tuned Kuroo out, vaguely aware of his voice in the background as he chose a part of the island in which to distract the rival captain. His eyes settled in the middle of the deep forest, and he grinned. Perfect.

His dragon shot down forward immediately, straight towards the spot Daichi was focusing on. He heard Kuroo swear behind him, and his grin grew wider. Kuroo quickly gained on him, and their dragons were soon neck to neck heading towards the same spot between the trees. Daichi clenched his teeth.

“Come on…” he muttered under his breath, pressing his dragon to go faster as the top of the trees came closer and closer. “Just a little more…”

Just as he was about to go through the trees, Daichi’s dragon darted right, making a sharp turn Kuroo couldn’t follow and successfully grabbing the sheep he’d located a little bit to the right. Daichi shouted in victory, and turned to look at Kuroo’s face, but he wasn’t on his tail anymore.

Daichi stopped his dragon to look around, but Kuroo was nowhere to be seen. He frowned, half expecting him to pop out of the trees at any second to steal the sheep from him, but nothing happened. His Deadly Nadder huffed to get his attention, eager to get moving, and Daichi bit his bottom lip.

“I’m sorry, girl. We have to go back” he whispered, patting her neck. He guided her to the top of the trees Kuroo had entered face-first, praying for the best, but expecting the worse.

\---- 

He found Kuroo groaning next to a tree, his dragon nowhere to be seen and one of his arms lying on top of his chest in a weird position.

“Fuck” muttered Daichi, color draining from his face, and he quickly dismounted his dragon and ran to the other captain.

“Kuroo!!” he screamed, and the Nekoma captain turned his head towards the sound of his voice, his eyes wide in shock. 

“Sawamura!! You didn’t abandon me after all!” he cackled, but Daichi ignored, patting his entire body in search for injuries.

“Kuroo oh my god are you okay?”

He forced a smile. “Sure, man. I feel like I’ve been ran over by a frigging Bewildrebeast but other than that, I’m totally fine” Daichi bit his bottom lip, worried, but Kuroo just laughed some more. “Dam Sawamura, I can’t believe you pulled that on me. You crows sure are smart”

“Stop laughing I feel terrible” Daichi frowned. Kuroo was about to shoot back, but Daichi stopped him, examining his body again.

“Ouch, stop it”

“Tell me if it hurts”

“It hurts” he said, and winced as soon as Daichi touched his arm.

“Okay so I think your arm is broken” he said, and Kuroo closed his eyes and muttered _Great_. “Don’t move”

“I wasn’t going anywhere I’ve got a broken arm”

Daichi ignored him, focused on patching him up with the materials he had in the bag attached to his dragon’s saddle. He used a book to immobilize his arm, and ripped his own shirt to use it as bandages.

“Ok” he breathed when he was finished. “How are you feeling now?”

“Um” Kuroo said, suddenly flustered. “I’m good.”

Daichi noticed the color was coming back to his face, his cheeks tinting pink. He also noticed he’d used his shirt as bandages for Kuroo’s arm so now he was shirtless, and felt suddenly self-conscious.

“That’s good.” he answered. “I’m sorry I made you crash and break your arm”

Kuroo nodded. “No problem”

“I’m going to put on my jacket now”

“Okay” Kuroo said, and the disappointment in his voice was certainly a product of Daichi’s imagination.

“I’m sorry” he said again, and Kuroo cackled a bit.

“I told you, it’s okay. It was a good strategy, and I should have seen it coming, so this is technically my fault. How did you know Monstrous Nightmares aren’t good with sharp turns?”

“I didn’t. That’s why you crashed. I thought you’d be able to turn better”

“Lucky you, then” Kuroo remarked, and Daichi blushed. He was about to say sorry again when Kuroo sat up straight with a sudden movement. “Where’s my dragon?” he asked, and Daichi shrugged. Kuroo stood up quickly, ignoring the pain on his right arm. “Oh my god where is he??”

“Kuroo don’t move so quickly, you’re hurt!”

“You don’t understand” he stammered. “He’s all alone, and he gets so scared when he’s alone, what if he’s hurt, what if he sets himself on fire- THERE YOU ARE!!”

Kuroo darted past Daichi, running as fast as he could to hug his Monstrous Nightmare as he whispered words of reassurance. Daichi got near them, and watched how the dragon was lying in the floor, its right wing set in an awkward position.

“Kuroo, I think his wing is broken”

Kuroo turned to look at him, a look of horror in his eyes. “Please tell me you’re joking”

“Why would I joke about something like that?”

Kuroo bit his bottom lip. “Can you fix him?? Like you did with me”

Daichi sighed “I can try immobilizing it, but I can’t promise anything. Make sure he stays still” 

He grabbed some ropes from his bag and neared the dragon, patching him up as well as he could while Kuroo talked to him in a low voice to make him keep calm. Daichi couldn’t help but imagine Kuroo addressing him in that same voice, too. Maybe at night, when everyone else had gone to bed, to tell him things he wouldn’t dare to in the light of day. Maybe while he kissed him, or-

“He’s done” Daichi informed, stepping away from the dragon, his cheeks pink from how his thoughts had strayed. Kuroo smiled at him, bright and genuine, and he felt his knees tremble.

“Thank you so much Sawamura”

“It’s okay, I mean, it’s my fault that he’s hurt so…”

“What do we do now?” Kuroo asked, and Daichi froze. Fuck. He hadn’t thought about that.

\---- 

After a long argument over who would have to leave who alone in the forest while the other flew to the village to bring doctors, they decided they’d walk together to the village. They walked close, their shoulders almost brushing, and Daichi contemplated how easy it would be to just hold Kuroo’s stupid hand and get it all over with, but he stopped himself before he could do something stupid, and put his hands in his pockets.

“I wonder who’s winning the race” Kuroo said, as they heard the sixth horn since they started walking.

“I don’t know” lied Daichi, but then smiled. “Probably Karasuno”

Kuroo huffed. “I don’t know why I even ask” they walked in silence for a while. “You’re really proud of your team, aren’t you?”

Daichi frowned. “Of course I am” he answered, not really understanding what Kuroo was trying to say, but he just cackled.

“Such a good captain” he teased, and Daichi blushed. He was going to shoot back with some embarrassing praise of his own, when Kuroo added. “And so is your co-captain. You two make a good couple”

“We’re not a couple” Daichi clarified. Kuroo raised an eyebrow. “I mean that we’re not dating”

“I didn’t say you were, I didn’t mean it like that” 

“Oh”

They fell into an awkward silence after that, broken only by the sound of the leaves crumbled by each of their steps. Their dragons followed their slow pace easily, the forest quiet and peaceful.

“And you?” asked Daichi finally. “Do you have a girlfriend? In Nekoma?”

Kuroo laughed awkwardly. “No way, man”

“A boyfriend, then?”

Kuroo became more flustered. “Not… at the moment”

Daichi stopped and looked at his feet, mustering up the courage to mutter. “Could that change?”

Kuroo stopped, too. “It could”

Daichi looked up to see Kuroo blushing deep red next to him. Feeling bold, he took a step forward. “Would you like it to change”

“Um” Kuroo said, frozen in place, his hands trembling. “I-um… Yeah, sure. It would…. Yes.”

Daichi smiled, and reached to hold Kuroo’s good hand, their fingers brushing lightly, when a loud “KUROO-SAN, DAICHI-SAN!!!” made them both jump away as if they’d been burned.

“Hello Hinata, Yamaguchi” he said, putting on his best smile at his young teammates, while Kuroo sent glares at the orange-haired boy.

“We’ve been looking everywhere for you!!” he kept going, ignoring said glares as Yamaguchi scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. “What happened to you guys?”

“I fell” Kuroo said, matter-of-factly, and Hinata noticed his immobilized arm, gasping excitedly. 

“Does it hurt?!”

“Hinata-kun, please” Yamaguchi intervened. “Give the captains some space”

“Thanks, Yamaguchi” Daichi sighed, and as soon as they reached the village, he turned on his captain voice. “Hinata, take Kuroo to the doctor, tell them I patched him up as well as I could but he needs to have his arm checked. Yamaguchi, please lead the dragons to the stables, and tell Kiyoko-san to get someone to check Kuroo’s dragon’s wing. I’m going to report back to Yui, she’ll be wondering where I was this whole time” His gaze lingered on Kuroo, and he mouthed later, as a kind of promise. Kuroo nodded, and he turned away, until he remembered. “Wait, who won the race in the end?” Daichi called, and his teammates’ faces lit up.

“We did!!” they shouted in unison, and Daichi sent a smug grin at Kuroo, who was taken away with a cute pout on his lips. Which made Daichi think. He’d have to remember to pick up some flowers on the way back from his meeting with Yui if he really wanted his plan of surprising Kuroo in the stables to succeed. Which he did. And it would. He was sure of it.

\---- 

Daichi woke up to someone shaking his shoulder gently and whispering “Hey, Sawamura, wake up”

He blinked slowly, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, and came face to face with a smirking Kuroo. “Good morning sleeping beauty”

“Kuroo” he mumbled, still half asleep. What was Kuroo doing in the stables after sunset? What was he doing sleeping in the stables after sunset? Then he remembered the plan and muttered “Fuck”

“I’m glad to see you too, babe” he said, and Daichi felt the blood rush to his cheeks. He could still salvage part of his plan, though, so he started working.

“I was waiting for you to get out of the doctor”

“Really” Kuroo smirked, but Daichi refused to be teased.

“I even brought you flowers” he said, pointing at a bunch of broken stems in the floor. “But your dragon ate them”

Kuroo snorted. “I can’t believe you”

“I can’t believe your dragon. Who eats flowers?”

“Monstrous Nightmares do. All of them”

“How was I supposed to know that though??”

“Well, captain” Kuroo remarked, getting into his personal space. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you liked me”

This time, it was Daichi’s turn to snort.

“What” Kuroo said, cheeks reddening.

“That was so uncool”

“No it wasn’t” he whined, but that only made Daichi start to cackle. “Well, if you’re going to be a rude asshole, I guess I’ll just leave and-“

“No, wait” Daichi said as he started moving away, placing a hand on his shoulder and leaning forward to close the distance between them in a kiss. Kuroo froze, and Daichi started to move away, but that just made him put his hands around Daichi’s neck and kiss him back slowly, just as Daichi had imagined he would. He smiled.

“Stop it” Kuroo mumbled against his lips.

“Stop what?” he asked, and Kuroo frowned.

“Stop smiling, I can’t kiss you if you keep grinning like an idiot”

Daichi’s smile grew wider. “I’m sorry” he said, pecking Kuroo’s lips softly. “I’m just too happy”

“God” he whispered as Daichi settled against his side, head on his shoulder. “And I’m supposed to be the dork here.”

Daichi hummed. “You still like me though”

“That’s my line” Kuroo frowned, and Daichi laughed again. “But yeah, I do. A lot”

“That’s good” Daichi said, nuzzling against his neck. “Because I like you a lot, too”

Kuroo was silent, and when Daichi opened an eye he saw him looking at him with a fond smile in his lips.

“Shut up” he said, hiding his head in Kuroo’s neck, and he sputtered.

“I haven’t even said anything!”

\---- 

The remaining days of the festival went by in a haze. Holding hands while walking down the street with their friends whistling at them, taking long walks through the forest and flying together to the most remote parts of the island- Daichi often thought it was a dream, too good to be true, but every time he opened his eyes, Kuroo was still there beside him, holding his hand.

The end of the festival came faster than he expected, and soon he was standing in the dock watching Yui shake hands with Kuroo, thanking him for taking good care of their captain, as his boyfriend assured her it was the other way around, actually, and Daichi died of embarrassment.

When it was time for him to shake hands with Kuroo he heard Suga holler at him, and he sent a glare over his shoulder, even though he was smiling. They shook hands but Kuroo wouldn’t let go.

“I’ll miss you” he said, and Daichi sighed, praying nobody was seeing his red face.

“I’ll miss you too, you dork” he muttered, and Kuroo grinned, leaning in to kiss his cheek sweetly before letting go of his hand.

“I’ll write every day”

“No you won’t” smiled Daichi. “Because the letters take at least a week to arrive here from Nekoma”

“I don’t care I’ll still do it” he pressed on.

“Kuroo” his friend Kenma called from his dragon, obviously uncomfortable at the public displays of affection.

“I’m coming!” Kuroo called back. He took one last glance at Daichi and smirked.

“Until next time” he said, before getting on his dragon, and Daichi grinned back at him.

“Yup” he answered as he watched Nekoma fly away as fast as they’d arrived. “Until next time”

And under every feeling of sadness upon watching them go, there was the sweet memory of the moments they had shared, and the prevalent anticipation of the days they’d spend together in the future.

**Author's Note:**

> Who's a bigger sap, Kuroo or Daichi? We accept bets. (Spoiler alert: they're tied)
> 
> Title is from [a song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fh_doTIrFRo), as usual.
> 
> And if anyone wants to talk headcanons about kurodai, or dragons or really anything else, I'm on tumblr at [agent-astronaut](http://agent-astronaut.tumblr.com/)


End file.
